Dear Pattonville families and staff,
As we begin our second half of the school year, we are excited to see students and staff back in our classrooms, even as the COVID-19 pandemic dominates the news and requires continued precautions. Our goals remain to keep our schools open and to protect the health and well-being of our students and staff. Our board-established safety net requiring all schools with positivity rates of 2% or higher to wear masks has been activated at all schools, and we continue to work with the county health department on protocols regarding positive cases. As we move forward, here are a few important things to know:
Positive cases
Pattonville updated its protocols for positive cases to align with new guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and recommendations by the St. Louis County Department of Public Health (DPH). Students and staff who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, are required to stay home for at least five days. After five days, the individual may return to school wearing a mask if the individual has no symptoms or the symptoms are resolving, including being fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication, no runny nose and an unproductive cough. The DPH also recommends that individuals get an antigen test on day five if possible to confirm that they are not highly infectious. The individual must wear a mask consistently and correctly for five additional days after leaving at-home isolation. Positive individuals will work with their school nurse on specifics for returning to school.
Keeping schools open
Our focus remains on keeping schools open and students learning. With the current surge of COVID-19 cases in our county and region, keeping individual schools operating will depend on our ability to adequately staff our classrooms and support roles when individuals become sick. Closing a school and transitioning to distance learning will be the last resort. You can help by keeping your children home if they are sick and by helping us find more substitutes to fill in the gap when needed. If you or someone you know is interested in working as a substitute in classroom or support roles, please contact our human resource office at (314) 213-8065 or go online at hrc.psdr3.org.
Prepared for inclement weather
Pattonville schools close only in case of emergency or extremely bad weather. Pattonville may use a virtual learning day or a delayed start on inclement weather days. Any decision to close schools due to weather will be announced using Pattonville's automated messaging system (email, texts and/or phone calls). Announcements will also be made on local television stations, the district website and Pattonville’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts. For more details, go online at bit.ly/PattonvilleSafety.
Vaccine interest
Vaccines remain an important tool in keeping individuals healthy, as they are the most effective way to reduce hospitalizations and deaths. In order to gain an understanding of how many Pattonville students have received a COVID-19 vaccine and whether we should host another clinic, we are asking parents to voluntarily update us on their children’s vaccine status. Providing this information is voluntary, but greatly appreciated. To assist us, please complete a short survey in your Parent Portal. Instructions for completing the online form are as follows:
- Use a web browser to visit the Parent Portal and log in.
- Select the student you wish to fill along the top.
- Select the Forms icon on the left side.
- Click on the form called COVID-19 Vaccine Status.
- Answer the questions.
- Click Submit. (Follow these instructions for each student.)
- If you have any technical issues completing the form, please call our technology help desk at (314) 213-8146.
For more information on COVID-19 resources, including where to get tested or receive a vaccine or to view our COVID-19 dashboard, go online at bit.ly/PSDCOVIDinfohub. We thank you for your ongoing support and assistance as we navigate the challenges and changes related to living, learning and working during this global pandemic.
Sincerely,
Tim Pecoraro, Ed.D.
Superintendent